The Tide Walker
by infinitygalaxies.infinitystars
Summary: Princess Annabeth of Athens met Prince Percy of Helike when they were just kids. A few years later, Helike was hit by a tsunami. Annabeth and her best friend, Thalia (Percy's cousin), can't believe that Percy's dead. When they're seventeen, they hear news about a pirate, the Tide Walker. Why does he sound so alike Percy? ALL RIGHTS GO TO RICK RIORDAN. AH but with Greek monsters!
1. Chapter 1

***based on the image linked below by thecottonproject on tumblr***  
 ***By the way, Helike was a real Ancient Greek city that was submerged by a tsunami and Histria was a real Ancient Greek city that was abandoned and forgotten.***

* * *

Annabeth was sitting in her room in Athens. Being a princess was hard work. She was only seven, but she already had many duties, being part of the royal family. The only thing she looked forward to were parties and balls. Like the one coming up.

Apparently, the royal family from a Greek island named Helike were visiting. Annabeth's mom, Queen Athena (Annabeth found her mom's name really ironic - they lived in Athens, and her mom was called Athena? It was funny…) had told Annabeth that the King and Queen of Helike had a son about her age. She hoped this boy wasn't annoying like both Prince Travis and Prince Connor from Arcadia. Annabeth internally shuddered. Those boys took out all of her energy. They never did what they were told. Evidently, Arcadia had more lax laws than Athens.  
Dressed in her best grey chiton and in her comfortable, yet regal, sandals, Annabeth walked calmly to her mother's room. However, before she reached the Queen's room, she bumped into her best friend, Thalia. Thalia was just a serving girl. At least, that's what the adults thought. To Annabeth and Thalia, they were both of noble blood.  
Thalia curtsied immediately. "Good morrow, Princess Annabeth." She greeted her best friend formally.  
"Good morrow, Thalia." Annabeth hated the formalities. Thalia was her personal maid, so shouldn't she be able to tell her to stop with the formalities? It was incredibly unfair.  
"So?" Thalia nudged her friend softly, both girls still outside the Queen's rooms. "How is my favourite princess?"  
"Thals, I'm your only princess. Anyway, I'm… nervous. A royal family is coming over today." Annabeth looked down. "What if they don't like me?"  
Thalia blinked at her friend's insecurity before laughing. "Annie! When has anyone not liked you?"  
"Don't call me Annie!" She scolded, but she was trying not to laugh. Thalia always managed to cheer her up. "Well, I've got to see Mom now, so… see you later."

Annabeth knocked clearly three times on her mother's door. As it swung open, Annabeth looked around at her mother's room.  
"What is it, darling?" Queen Athena asked, while sitting in front of her vanity, with her maids doing her make-up.  
"When are they arriving, Mom?" Annabeth asked, bouncing on the balls of her feet.  
"In a few hours, darling. Do you want to make sure all of the food is ready?" Annabeth nodded at her mother's question. As she turned to leave, Athena caught her chin and stroked it, lovingly.

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 **The image is [40 . media . tumblr (, com) 09290da80dfdd4b81b545c791c6a196a/tumblr _ o0gzlv4wDh1qlb65uo1_540 . png] - just remove all of the spaces and parentheses; and replace the comma with a fullstop/period. XD**


	2. Chapter 2

Finally, after nearly forever waiting, Annabeth saw a carriage drawing up outside the palace.  
"Mom! Dad! They're here!" She called out, alerting her parents of the arriving guests.  
Annabeth followed King Fredrick and Queen Athena Chase to the door. As the servants opened the doors, Annabeth gasped.

The people were gorgeous. And they looked very different from her. While she had pale skin, blonde hair and grey eyes; these people had tan skin, black hair and greenish-blue eyes.  
The family entered. The two Kings nodded greeting to each other, while the wives talked about food and stuff. Annabeth watched the family.  
Upon sensing her gaze, the King looked at her and smiled. Leaning down to her level, he asked for her name. After she gave it, he outstretched his hand for her to shake. "I am King Poseidon. This is Queen Amphritrite." He indicated his wife, who gave Annabeth a wide smile. Pulling a tall boy towards him, he said, "This is my eldest son, Prince Triton Jackson." The boy bowed stiffly before turning to someone behind King Poseidon. "And this is our little bundle of trouble," Annabeth heard a small noise of protest as Prince Triton laughed, "this is Prince Perseus Jackson." King Poseidon moved aside to let Annabeth see his son. She almost started gaping at the sight of him. He had shaggy black hair, and mesmerising sea-green eyes. They seemed to reflect the mood of the oceans, or maybe he influenced the oceans. His eyes and the ocean seemed one and the same, Both seemed slightly… for lack of a better word… choppy.  
"Papa! My name is Percy! We already settled this on the carriage!" He turned to face Annabeth. "I apologise, Princess Annabeth," he said formally and apologetically, bowing while he said her name, "but it appears to have slipped my father's mind that I have always preferred to go by the name of Percy." His wide doe eyes didn't stray from Annabeth's own eyes. "I would appreciate it, Princess Annabeth, if you called me Prince Percy." Annabeth jerked her head in agreement. She nearly started at his grin. It was so innocent, so young, that it almost seemed too much of a juxtaposition in relation to the maturity of his spoken word.

"Come, my friends!" Annabeth's father called attention to himself, pulling the Jackson family's gazes from both Percy and her, to Fredrick. "Let me show you around the palace! Annabeth, you may show Percy the child rooms, if you wish." He said. Annabeth nodded and looked at Prince Percy. Bowing, he held out his arm, as if to say 'lead the way'. Annabeth half-smiled and walked in the direction he pointed, at the last second, tugging his hand, as if to reassure herself that he was still there.


	3. Chapter 3

Annabeth led Percy through the palace to her quarters, filled with child-friendly things.  
As soon as they reached the door, Annabeth turned to her new friend. "Please, Prince Percy, as soon as we enter, I am simply Annabeth. I am no longer a princess once I pass these doors. Please accept that."  
"Of course. That would mean that I am simply Percy." The young boy then muttered, "That's all I've wanted to be." Without saying anything else, he pushed the doors.

Sitting in the middle of the large room that then veered off into separate rooms, on the middle of the cushion throne, was Thalia. Annabeth stood alone in the middle of the doorway, Percy having hidden behind the wall at the first sight of her choppy black hair. "Hey!" Annabeth greeted her friend, nervously. She wasn't sure how Thalia would take Percy.  
"Hey, Annabeth! So? How's this guest family?" Thalia asked. Annabeth heard Percy gasp outside, but it was incredibly soft. She met Thalia's intense stare, until someone interrupted them.  
Percy had cleared his throat to gain their attention. Annabeth watched as Thalia's jaw dropped. "We're good, thanks for asking, Thals."  
"Percy, is that you?" Thalia asked, her voice coloured with incredulity.  
"Wait," Annabeth said, confused, "you two… know each other?"  
"Yes, we do." Percy said. "Annabeth? Meet my cousin, Princess Thalia Grace of Olympia."  
"Wait, what?" Annabeth almost screeched.  
"My brother, Jason, and I are Prince and Princess of Olympia." Thalia looked down. "My father is King Zeus Grace, and my mother is Queen Hera."

Thalia turned to Percy. "How are Nico and Bianca?"  
"Our Histrian family are well, I presume. At least, Nico was when I saw him." Percy replied, his face turned away from his cousin. "You have heard the news, I assume?"  
Thalia looked intrigued. "No, what happened?"  
Percy looked at her. "Bianca was killed." Thalia gasped. "An archer was found guilty. Admitted to it. Said that he disliked the inequality in the kingdom." He started muttering. "He wasn't even a citizen of Histria."  
"Wait, Thalia? Why are you pretending to be my maidservant, then?" Annabeth asked. As soon as she had finished, Percy snorted and Thalia flushed.  
"A punishment from my father, I am afraid. Jason and I were rather… inappropriately behaved in front of important guests, so my father sent us both to work as serving children in other cities. Jason was sent to Corinth and I was sent here." Her face and voice started to seem longing. "I haven't seen Jason in ages."  
"Luckily for you, Thals," Percy grinned, "we were just in Corinth."  
Thalia's face lit in hope and happiness. "Really? Did you see Jason?"  
Percy's face fell. "Unfortunately. The Corinthians aren't treating him well, I fear. Jason looked too mature for his own good. He acts like an adult when he is but six years old." He started to explain when Thalia's face betrayed her confusion. "He carries around a sword and a sheath. A shield is always strapped to his back. He barely remembers Olympia or his family."  
"He is but six years of age?" Annabeth gasped, deeply upset to hear of this mistreatment.  
"Yes." Thalia's voice said, softly and sadly. She had missed her brother and almost thought that this punishment wasn't teaching him a lesson, but giving him a new life - a life where his Olympian family didn't exist.  
Percy sniffed, causing both girls to look at him. "When we saw him, it was me who went up to him. Father had told me that Jason may not wish to speak to me…"  
Thalia interrupted Percy. "That's nonsense. Jason loves you! Whenever you visited Olympia, Jason would be glued to your side."  
"Loved." Percy corrected. "When he saw me, he first asked my name. He has forgotten me." Percy suddenly looked as young as his age. "Jase forgot me. He didn't remember… I wanted him to remember…"  
Thalia was in shock. Knowing that the two cousins needed time and space to sort this out, Annabeth creeped backwards, leaving the room and slowly closed the door behind her.


	4. Chapter 4

Over time, she and Percy saw each other often: at balls, at ceremonies, and whenever their families visited. But, not two years after their first meeting, Annabeth and Thalia received the terrible news from the crying king and queen.

"My dears," King Fredrick said, "Helike has been submerged. No survivors have been found."  
Annabeth didn't realise the significance of this, until Thalia gasped. She leaned forward and whispered, "Percy's kingdom is Helike," into Annabeth's ear.  
"NO!" Annabeth shouted, before her knees gave out. "No! Not… not Percy!" She was growing fond of that Seaweed Brain, as she had started calling him. She tried to find out more information. "How? How did it happen?"  
"A tsunami, dearest." Queen Athena said, even her tears were graceful.

"But, Percy's a strong swimmer! And the water was his second home!" Annabeth argued, grasping at straws here. She knew that nobody, not even Percy, could survive a Greek tsunami. The sea god Poseidon (another ironic thing) must have been really upset with them.

Annabeth couldn't believe it - she wouldn't. Somehow, she knew that Percy must be alive. She felt that she would be able to feel his death. Somehow. She knew Thalia agreed, from the pursed lips her best friend wore. The two girls nodded at each other, and they both mentally agreed to find out as much as possible about this tsunami.


	5. Chapter 5

It had been years. Annabeth was now seventeen. A beauty. She had beautiful princess blonde curls, beautiful pale skin, and a tall slim figure. What ruined her 'perfect princess' look were her hard, steel-grey eyes. They had known pain and they dished it out to every suitor who came to call for her hand.  
King Fredrick and Queen Athena had by now given up and left her to her own devices. "She'll find a prince in time," she heard them say to court advisors and other nobelmen. She shook her head at that - she wouldn't until she found Percy.  
Thalia was grown too. She had dark ink-black hair, and striking electric blue eyes that did the same as Annabeth's.

It was in a council meeting - the first in ages that Annabeth had sat in - that she heard something that made her sit up in curiosity.  
"The Tide Walker has claimed another." A councilman said, bowing to the royal family.  
"The Tide Walker?" Annabeth questioned.  
"Yes, Princess. He's a young man, probably not more than Your Highness' age. A mere youth. Yet he is a pirate. He has the sea in his eyes and he is merciless. He has never lost a fight at sea." The courtier replied, turning to the princess.  
"The sea in his eyes, has he?" She repeated, glancing at Thalia, who looked back at her with wide eyes. Annabeth turned to her mother. "Queen Athena, please may this case be turned to me?"

Her mother looked so startled that her daughter was taking interest in something other than the missing Prince Percy Jackson, that she immediately agreed.  
"I thank you. Now, please excuse me." Annabeth rose. Before she left, she indicated at the councilman who brought the news. "You. I wish to see you about this matter in this throne room at noon tomorrow." She ordered, knowing that the throne room would not be in use at that time. The councilman bowed in acceptance.  
With that, Annabeth turned and left the throne room, Thalia following not moments after.

As soon as they were out of earshot, Thalia and Annabeth burst into conversation. "Pirates! Why didn't we think it before?"  
"He always did say that if he wasn't a prince, he'd be a pirate!"  
"Though he did say he'd try to be a good one." Annabeth argued.  
"We need to find out what they meant by 'claiming another' and what else he's claimed."


	6. Chapter 6

The next morning, Thalia and Annabeth made their way to the throne room. The councilman was there, surrounded by a few guards. With him was a girl, dressed in boyish clothing.  
"Your Highness." He bowed.  
"Please," Annabeth said, waving a hand, "skip the formalities. Tell me everything about the Tide Walker. And explain what you meant yesterday when you said he 'claimed another'. Also, explain the prescence of this girl."  
The courtier bowed. "Of course, Your Highness. The Tide Walker is a pirate who mainly operates around our seas. He is merciless to those who fight or are assumed to be against him. Luckily, he has an unwritten alliance with certain royal families along the coastal line - we are fortunate enough to be one of them. He has never formally introduced himself to any court - instead sending people from his crew, such as this young woman."

Annabeth, startled, interrupted him. "I apologise for the rudeness, but you work on his ship?" She asked the girl.  
Angry brown eyes met her grey ones. "'Ship', Princess?" She scoffed then. "Don't insult him. Our Captain has a few squadrons' worth of ships. Of course, he only rides on his ship."  
"So who commandeers the others?"  
"His most trusted inner circle." The girl pushed out her chest in pride. "I am proud to say that I commandeer one of his ships. The ship that protects Sparta, I command. Of course, Captain gives me my orders, but I man that ship." She boasted.  
"Congratulations." Annabeth praised. "That's not easy work."

Annabeth turned to the courtier. "Is there anything that you can tell me that this woman cannot?" When he shook his head, she nodded. "You are dismissed." She turned back to the woman as the courtier left the throne room. "Now, what may I call you?"  
"Commandeer Clarisse La Rue."  
"May I call you Clarisse?" When the girl nodded, Annabeth continued. "Now, what can you tell me about your captain?"  
"Well, he's a private individual. Tall, probably about 6 foot. Eyes that always seem to match the colour of the sea. Fairly built up. The best at sword-fighting. Not too bad at wrestling. Seems to like the colour blue." Clarisse examined Annabeth's face. "I have a feeling that you want me to be more specific. More random. Hm. His ship, the one he commandeers himself, is called the Princess Andromeda. It's the hardest ship in all the Seven Seas to find. He has a black horse named Blackjack. Uses both a sword named Anaklusmos, and a trident. No idea where he got the blasted things from - he's unstoppable with them, and nobody can figure out where he got them forged." She paused. "He's got allies in every coastal city. Including this one." She blurted out. She glanced at a portrait of Annabeth's parents. "You make him out to be the bad guy, but he takes from those who do him or his allies wrong and distributes it evenly. When that snob told you that our Captain had claimed another, it meant that we've aquired a new ship. Some stupid Romans again. Captain hates the Romans. Well," she contemplated, "he strongly dislikes them."

Thalia leaned forward. "Clarissa. May I ask a question?" At the pirate's nod, Thalia continued. "Have you dined with the Tide Walker at any point?"  
"Of course. All of the commandeers of his ships dine with him one a random day each year to give a report." Clarisse answered, her voice steady but her face giving away her confusion.  
"Okay. What does the Tide Walker eat?" Thalia asked. When she saw Annabeth's face as well as Clarisse's, she shook her head. "Just answer. If we are to meet, it is only polite to bring gifts. Maybe food is something we should bring."  
Clarisse nodded, as if accepting this reason. "He eats absolutely anything as far as I know." She paused. "Oh, wait. He does have this strange habit of only eating foods which are blue of colour. He asks his cook to mix food colouring in each of the meals he has."  
Thalia's face was triumphant as she leaned back. "Thank you, Clarisse."

Clarisse nodded. She turned to Annabeth again. "If that is all, Your Highness, I'll take my leave. I need to get back to my ship."  
"Oh, of course." Annabeth said. "Thank you, Clarisse. I hope we meet again."  
Clarisse bowed and sauntered out of the hall.


	7. Chapter 7

Annabeth and Thalia walked slowly back to Annabeth's chambers. "Thalia, why did you ask what the Tide Walker eats?"  
Thalia grinned at her best friend. "You mean, what Percy eats." She sighed and threw her head back, as if in relief and peace. "I know of no other person, Greek or otherwise, who primarily feeds himself on blue foods."  
Annabeth smiled. "Oh, Thalia. We don't actually know that. After all, you primarily know Athenians - and all we do really is eat olives and meat. You can't judge by that. But I will admit, this Tide Walker does sound a lot like our Percy." Then, Annabeth frowned, remembering something Clarisse had said. "We also need to find out who is the Tide Walker's ally in our court. We may need to ask for an audience with this pirate."

Thalia nodded. "I think I know just the way to find out, Annabeth."  
"How?" Annabeth asked, confused.  
Thalia smiled, mischieviously. "My dear princess… have you ever heard of High Priestess Rachel Dare?"  
Annabeth was baffled. "Of course I have. She is the priestess present at every event we, and nearly all other royal families, hold."  
"Rachel is somehow related to a maid I know. I can request an audience with her."  
'But how will Rachel help? She's just a priestess, right?"  
"Oh, Annabeth." Thalia stroked Annabeth's hair. "How little you know. Rachel is the Pythia. She is never seen, but she holds the Oracle's spirit within her."

Annabeth's eyes widened and Thalia knew that she and Annabeth were on the same page when the glint returned to her eyes. "We're going to visit her and ask her to tell us everything we need to know, right?"  
"But of course, my dear princess." Thalia laughed.


	8. Chapter 8

Annabeth hated carriage rides. Hated. Loathed. Detested. Abhorred. There was no word strong enough. And she had to suffer through one until she reached Delphi. Thalia was trying to distract her by telling her stories of her childhood with Percy and their other cousins, as well as Jason.  
Eventually, they reached Lord Apollo's city.

Delphi was a beautiful place. The temples magnificent and the company polite and charming. Annabeth had previously met the widowed King Apollo (what was with the royal families and having the current ruling monarch have the name of their godly patron?) and his son, Prince Lee Fletcher. The King and Prince welcome both Annabeth and Thalia into the city and persuaded the two (who only gave the pretence of sleeping in the humble abodes around them) to stay at the palace for the extent of their journey.

The first day in Delphi was spent with Thalia being dragged around the city by Annabeth. After all, Annabeth was her mother's daughter, and was ridiculously interested in architecture. They looked at building after building, temple after temple. Eventually, the two had had to return to the palace and dine with their hosts.

The second day was their visit to the Oracle. The Oracle lived in Lord Apollo's temple high in the mountains of Delphi. The temple was probably one of the first Greek buildings to see the sun every morning, Annabeth had mused, as she climbed up the mountain, followed by Thalia and their servants.  
Upon reaching the temple's entrance, Annabeth stared at the engraved phrasing 'γνῶθι σεαυτόν - Know Thyself'. Well, if she and Thalia were right, the boy they were trying to save probably didn't. She acknowledged the fumes rising from the temple, showing that Rachel - or the Pythia, as she was now - was open for business. Annabeth scrunched her nose, certain she could smell the burning goat organs. It was disgusting, but necessary.

Annabeth sighed and entered the temple, feeling the calming scents of the incense sticks soothing her. She turned to a nearby priest and explained her presence. "I am Princess Annabeth Chase of Athens and I have brought along Princess Thalia Grace of Olympia. We request an audience with the Pythia."  
All of the priests in attendence interviewed both girls, in preparation of their audience with Rachel. Annabeth learned how to structure her question to Rachel and how to present her honey-cake gifts to her. They went through many more rituals, but neither Annabeth nor Thalia had to do much in them that required much effort.  
Finally, they were allowed to communicate with her. Annabeth offered her honey-cakes after the ceremonial laurel procession. She then asked, "O Pythia, will the Tide Walker be who we need and want?"  
The Pythia looked up at Annabeth with a milky version of Rachel's green eyes. " _The meeting of a princess and an adversary_  
 _Shall summon the one who controls the sea_  
 _Swear an oath by a final breath_  
 _As he travels on to the lands beyond death._ " She said before closing her eyes and collapsing slightly.

The priest led Annabeth out of the temple and thanked her before returning her to her entourage of servants and to Thalia.  
"Well? What did she say?" Thalia said, excited. She noticed Annabeth's look of horror and concern. "What is it?" Thalia asked, suddenly serious and cautious.  
She said that the meeting between a princess and an adversary shall summon the one who controls the sea. Someone will swear an oath by a final breath as he travels on to the lands beyond death." Annabeth repeated, shaking. She had been staring at the stones and pebbles beneath her feet when recounting the prophecy, but sharply (and slightly manically) looked up and met Thalia's eyes. "What if he dies? The princess is probably me, but what enemy will I meet? The one who controls the sea, well, that's going to either be Lord Poseidon or the Tide Walker. It's probably going to be the Tide Walker. But who is the one who will die?" Annabeth wailed.  
Thalia sat her friend down on a bench nearby and soothed her. "Shush, shush." She soothed. "If the Tide Walker is Percy, we won't let him die. Believe me. Especially if he's the captain of that ship. His crew would probably willingly give their life for him a hundred times over." She hugged Annabeth. "Don't fret."


	9. Chapter 9

They had decided to stick to the coast-line on their journey back to Athens. Somewhere near Thebes, Annabeth's carriage randomly shook to a stop. "What's going on?" She asked, turning to Thalia, as if she'd have the answers.  
"No idea." Thalia replied, her face showing her confusion and irritation.

Annabeth and Thalia alighted their carriage and tried to see the problem.  
"Bandits!" Annabeth gasped, suddenly grateful that she had dressed more like a commoner on King Apollo's advice.

"Oh, the blonde one's pretty." The bandits' leader exclaimed. "Maybe we'll just borrow her for a while. The black-haired one, too." His laugh was dry and rough, like the sands they were standing on.  
One bandit then attempted to grasp Annabeth's forearm to force her to their leader. Luckily, Annabeth had learned simple attacks from unwanted attentions from her mother. She escaped his grasp and quickly ran to hide in some bushes, along with Thalia and a few other maidservants. Her menservants started fighting, with fists or dropped swords.

Suddenly, an arrow hit the bandits' second-in-command. The man fell quickly, and a slave quickly proclaimed him dead. Heads waved around, trying to find the archer responsible, when the ground suddenly shook as a large ship docked nearby.  
"Bandits." A strong, angry voice shouted out. "Drop your weapons and leave this area. The _Tide Walker_ commands it."  
Quickly, all of the bandits dropped all of their weapons and scattered - all except the snarling leader, who was held by a few of Annabeth's manservants. Annabeth and Thalia looked at each other, amazed by their luck.


	10. Chapter 10

A plank dropped, forming a bridge between the ship and the land. Annabeth and Thalia led the group of people wishing to give thanks to the man who saved them.

First down was a short boy with blond hair and dark eyes. He held a bow and arrow in his hands and grinned at the group. "Did I get the right guy?" He asked, looking around. "I could barely see who I was supposed to be aiming at." He turned around and yelled back onto the ship. "Captain, did I get the right one?!"  
After a small procession of the crew on the ship, finally (finally) came the Captain. "No, Michael. You got his First Mate."  
The blond - Michael - deflated. "Styx. And here I was, hoping to be at least better than Lee." He was back to being as bubbly as when he first got off the ship when he noticed the looks on him. "Oh, Captain, can I introduce everyone?"  
"If you must, Michael." The Captain sighed, but his amusement was obvious and unhidden.  
"Of course I must, Captain." Michael said, eyes wide. He turned to Annabeth and grinned. "I'm guessing you're in charge here, so I'll address you."

The boy bowed. "I am Michael Yew, bastard son of King Apollo, and Archer of the Princess Andromeda. And in reverse order of importance to our crew," he said with a gleam of mischief in his eyes, "I present to you: Lacey Tanaka, our tailor; Nyssa Barrera, our blacksmith; Piper McLean, our rigger; Clovis Dormer, our lookout; Drew Tanaka, our... adaption; Hylla and Reyna Ramírez-Arellano, our swordswomen; Leo Valdez, our shipwright; myself, the archer; Will Solace, our doctor; Mitchell Ringer, our cook; Chris Rodriguez, our navigator; Grover Underwood, Second Mate; Zoë Nightshade, First Mate; and the Tide Walker, our Captain."

Lacey Tanaka was a petite brunette girl, probably no more than fifteen. She introduced herself as a bastard of the Queen Aphrodite. She was slight and had callouses from her needles.  
Nyssa Barrera was a girl who very obviously was a blacksmith. She had muscles from working in a workshop all day. She was a bastard of King Hephæstus, which raised eyebrows (which made her roll her eyes).  
Piper McLean was another bastard of Queen Aphrodite. She was probably around seventeen, like Annabeth and Thalia. She had long chestnut hair. Her dainty hands had many rough scars from repeated rope burn.  
Clovis Dormer, a ward of Queen Aphrodite, was a slightly chubby boy with curly brown hair and a thin, lanky stature. He seemed to be battling a constant state of sleep.  
Drew Tanaka, Lacey's twin sister, was an easily dismissable girl - she blended in well with her surroundings. Her clothes were blue and brown, and her eyes seemed to be constantly assessing Annabeth's entourage.  
Hylla and Reyna Ramírez-Arellano were tall girls who were toned and built for combat. They were wards of King Ares and obviously had all the Spartan training he offered. Their right hands held callouses from constant sparring. They were very tense, so Annabeth moved on, not wanting to be on the end of their swords.  
Leo Valdez was a bubbly, short boy with curly brown hair and a seemingly excitable personality. He was another bastard of King Hephæstus. He waved at the girls, winking at them.  
Will Solace was a tall blond boy who was carrying a portable medicine chest. Annabeth shied away from him when she saw it, remembering her own poor experience with the chest back in Athens. Will introduced himself as a bastard of King Apollo.  
Mitchell Ringer was a bastard of Queen Aphrodite, with curly brown hair and big blue eyes. He grinned toothily and waved at Annabeth and her entourage. He wore a makeshift apron that appeared to just be a bit of cloth.  
Chris Rodriguez was a bastard of King Hermes. He had the genetic Hermes upturned nose and curly hair, Annabeth noted, remembering his half-brothers - the Stoll Princes. He had a couple of maps stuffed into his pockets.  
Grover Underwood was a ward of the perpetually drunk King Dionysus. He had curly brown hair, but he seemed nothing like his guardian. He stared at Annabeth and Thalia, seeming to seize them up.  
Zoë Nightshade was a ward of King Apollo, with long dark hair and light eyes, she didn't seem like someone to cross. Her eyes flashed when Annabeth met them, so she quickly moved on.  
Suddenly, she met eyes she had definitely seen before. The Tide Walker. Percy. They were the same person. She knew those eyes. She definitely knew those eyes. She'd had dreams and daydreams of them. She had embroidered and drawn them thousands of times. She scanned and assessed her Percy... uh, she scanned and assessed Percy. He was as tall and tan as ever. His eyes truly did reflect and imitate the seas, she marvelled. He was toned, his muscles clearly defined. He held his trident in one hand, the other lightly resting on the hilt of his sheathed sword. His hair was as messy as ever and she smiled to herself. She met his eyes again. Then, she frowned to herself - those eyes had seen pain and anguish. Not only that, but they seemed guilty and happy and nervous. She cursed those expressive eyes - there always were several emotions expressed in them at once. She did a quick body scan. He didn't seem to be hurt anywhere. Annabeth turned slightly to glance at Thalia. She noted Thalia's relieved face and decided Thalia had also done a quick inventory of Percy as she had just done.

"Per - Sorry, what may we call you, Tide Walker? It seems like a bit of a mouthful for informal conversation." Annabeth asked, as politely as she was raised.  
His face, for a second, showed confusion, before it cleared and he went back to looking stoic. "You may call me Captain, Princesses." He bowed his head slightly in acknowledgement of their superiority to him, which made Annabeth frown.  
"Please, Captain. I am simply Annabeth here." Annabeth said, repeating something she had said many years ago, when she had first met Percy.  
His face immediately jumped in surprise, as if recognising her for a second, before blanking. This was very strange to Annabeth, and she resolved to write to Rachel. "Of course, Pri- Annabeth." He said, stiffly.

* * *

His face turned to focus on something behind her. She cringed away in slight fear as his eyes flashed and darkened in anger. He twirled his trident as he sauntered casually, but still in a way that instigated fear in those against him, towards the bandit. Ducking his head slightly to be on eye-level of the bandit, he grinned a dark smile and pulled off the bandit's mask. "Hello, Luke." He said, conversationally. "Didn't expect to see you here, this far in Greek waters." His tone was warning, as if hinting to this Luke guy that the Greek waters were his waters. "Thought you'd gone up to Roman waters. That was our agreement after our last battle, was it not?"  
Thalia and Annabeth shared startled and panicked looks. 'Last battle'? Had Percy been hurt? What had happened? Annabeth made a mental note to ask his crew - who, as an entire body, had narrowed their eyes at Luke.  
Luke sneered at Percy. "Well, well, well. If it isn't Captain Scallywag." Percy snarled and his fingers twitched for his sword. Luke seemed to notice this and his eyes widened slightly in fear.  
"You want another swordfight, Castellan? Because that's how you earn a swordfight with me." Percy growled, his eyes darkening as the seas behind him grew ever more choppy.  
Luke's eyes betrayed the fear his face couldn't show. He sneered again, but this time, its effect was dulled. "Just give me the girls, Walker. Then, I might spare you."  
Percy's answering laugh (which threw his head back) was sarcastic, incredulous and short. He dropped his head to speak at Luke's level and sneered back. "You? Spare me? Oh, Castellan, who was it who needed a new sword after our last spar? And who was it who gave you that fantastic scar?" He asked, rhetorically, running a finger down a scar on Luke's face that started just below his eye and ended by his jaw. His face turned slightly to his crew, while his eyes were trained on Luke's. "Reyna! Show Captain Castellan your new toy."  
Reyna grinned. "My pleasure, Captain." She reached behind her back and pulled out a wicked sword from her tunic. It was made of two different materials, which made Annabeth wonder where (and how) it was forged. She showed the blade to Luke, turning it around and making it catch the light.  
Luke snarled when he saw the sword and attempted to surge forward, when Percy round-house kicked him in the stomach, making him fall onto the ground and groan. "Uh, uh, uh!" He sang, shaking his finger. "That's Reyna's sword now. And, one question, Reyna: who's side are you on?"  
"Why, your side, of course, Captain Walker." She grinned.  
Percy knelt down by Luke, who was still groaning on the sandy floor. "Hear that? That sword's mine. Leave the girls alone - they're under my protection. We don't want another situation like in Megara, do we?" Percy raised an eyebrow, almost mocking Luke. Annabeth glanced back at his crew and saw that Clovis Dormer and the bastards of Queen Aphrodite had narrowed their eyes at Luke.

* * *

Annabeth decided to stop being a chicken about it and ask one of the crew. She leaned towards Piper McLean. "What happened in Megara?"  
Piper looked at Annabeth with a start before collecting herself and answering. "Our sister, the Princess Silena of Megara, was targeted by Captain Castellan a few months ago. He wanted to add her to his... collection." She said, looking at Annabeth before deciding on a word. Annabeth scrunched up her nose, deciding she understood what Piper was trying to suggest. Then, as Piper continued, her voice got harder. "Captain Walker, I suppose you have figured out that that is our name for the Tide Walker, he found out about Castellan's plan, and he... wasn't happy. Clovis was locked up on the crow's nest, and we weren't faring any better, as her half-siblings, but, man!" She shook her head, her eyes wide. "You should have seen the Captain. He was furious. Without a word, he steered us toward Megara and confronted Castellan in the Queen's throne room. The waves back at sea were like artillery on the coast. Captain and Castellan had a swordfight and Captain dragged Anaklusmos down Castellan's face and split open that smooth cheek of his." She grinned quickly at Annabeth. "Castellan fell to the floor in pain. Captain took his sword as spoils and came back. Placed Megara under his protection."  
Annabeth nodded, intrigued. "What other cities are under his protection?"  
Piper scratched her head. "Uh... Athens, Delphi, Lemnos, Megara, and... Thebes. Histria was, as well, before it was abandoned." Piper finished sadly.  
"Abandoned? Why?" Annabeth asked.  
"The royal family disappeared, as did all of the citizens. No one knows what's become of them. Barely anyone can even remember how to reach Histria."

Annabeth tried to broach the topic of Helike. "Has... has the Captain ever mentioned a place called Helike?" She asked, cautious of the response.  
Piper stared at her, astonished. "How did you know that? There are rumours of how Captain became a pirate, and all of them originate with him living a seaman's life in Helike."  
"Has the Captain never told you?" Annabeth asked, trying to fish for information as much as possible.  
"He has. Well," she amended, giving it second thought, "he has told us all he remembers. You see," she moved even closer to Annabeth, "whenever a new member joins us, we all tell everyone our story. How we got to where we are. How we got to serve the greatest pirate on this side of the Atlantic."

Piper smiled at Annabeth. "Unfortunately, it's not my story to tell. Join our crew if you want to find out." She joked.  
"Can I do that?" Annabeth asked, curious.  
"Uh... I'm pretty sure..." Piper spluttered, startled.  
Annabeth laughed. "It's no worries, Piper."  
Piper smiled back at her. "See, if this were my ship, I'd let you on, but Captain likes to interview and personally know all of the recruits before they actually join his crew. They're not even infantry on these ships, the recruits. If they haven't been chosen, they have to leave the ship the next time we dock. One idiot recruit was so obsessed over the idea of joining the Tide Walker's crew, that he stowed away under the lifeboat. Captain found him pretty quick and got pissed." She quickly stopped and checked Annabeth's expression. Seeing no disapproval there, she hurried to explain herself before continuing. "I'm sorry, Princess, it's just that... on a ship, you get used to swearing. After all, we are all sailors." She smiled. "Anyway, Captain was pissed. The recruits had signed a contract, stating that if they were not chosen, they'd get off the ship at the next port we docked at. Captain hates people breaking promises or oaths or such like. He gave the recruit a choice: to either jump off the boat and pray to Lord Poseidon that he is merciful, or to get off the Princess Andromeda at the next port. The recruit wouldn't hear of not being on the ship, so Captain made the choice for him and pretended to ask him to fish for him. The thing was we have no fishing boat and the ship's too tall to fish off the side of it. The recruit got in the water and we quickly evacuated the area." At Annabeth's alarmed expression, Piper hurried to console her. "The recruit was not harmed - physically, at least. He joined Castellan's crew." She said, bitterly. "We didn't want him - he just wanted to rape, murder, and steal. We do not do that. We protect and steal. Occasional kills."  
"Yeah, occasional." Reyna laughed, walking up to the group, whilst wiping clean her sword. "Not like Captain, Hylla and I just decimated the bandits that weren't part of Castellan's crew." She nodded to her sister, who silently echoed her actions.  
"Wait, what do you mean by his crew? He's a bandit, right?" Annabeth asked, confused.  
Reyna turned to Annabeth. "No, Princess." She answered. "Luke Castellan is another pirate, much like the recruit Pipes was telling you about. Castellan doesn't realise, however, that despite his insistence of only people against the Tide Walker and what he stands for, and whatever..." Reyna looked around to check for any eavesdroppers, dragging the suspense out.  
"Well?" Thalia interjected impatiently.  
Reyna and her sister laughed. "We have a spy aboard his ship." Reyna whispered into their ears. "Halcyon Green." Reyna leaned away from the two and narrowed her eyes suddenly. "I hear that you've told anyone outside of our crew and the two of you and I will kill you." She threatened. The two princesses gulped and nodded in agreement, and Reyna's face cleared. She smiled, as if she hadn't just threatened the princesses' lives. "Come. Captain would want to see you."


	11. Chapter 11

Reyna and Hylla walked with Annabeth and Thalia, almost keeping an eye on them, rather than protecting them. That was before Annabeth thought that actually, instead of protecting the princesses, Reyna and Hylla were protecting the crew.  
They walked through the cabins and eventually walked up the steps to the Captain's Quarters. Reyna knocked hard on the door three times. "Okay, Cap. I brought the princesses." She called out.

After a few minutes of silence, the door suddenly swung wide open. There was Percy. Just standing there, his hair all messed up and his jacket unbuttoned. "Thanks, Rey. Hyl." He nodded at the two girls. They grinned at him before turning and leaving. As they left, Annabeth watched them giggling and whispering to each other. She turned back to see Percy with an exceptionally confused look on his handsome face. "Come on in, princesses." He moved aside and let them enter.

* * *

As soon as she entered, Thalia choked on what sounded like a hidden sob. Annabeth looked around and realised why. Everything was blue - his favourite colour. But, that wasn't the worst part - there were hundreds of papers pinned to the walls with small parts of Thalia's and Annabeth's seven-year-old selves drawn on them. Annabeth vaguely remembered Percy telling her that he was terrible at drawing. Mentally, she called him a liar, inspecting a detailed drawing of one of her curls. There were annotations on each drawing, giving further information, such as colour, springiness, and any descriptive phrases.

"Ah. You've noticed my memories." Percy said, noticing what had caught their attention.  
"Excuse me?" Annabeth asked, confused.  
"You are excused." He joked, his lips twitching up slightly into a brief smile. "I had amnesia. I had forgotten every memory I had before my tenth name-day." He turned to the Wall of Memories. "Sometimes, I have a random flash of a memory and draw it." He frowned slightly. "I only remember five people. Two men, a woman, and two girls. The girls are definitely rooted into my memory, they are the only ones I can definitely remember features of." He smiled, before dragging a finger down a drawing of a girl with long dark hair. "One girl had long dark hair, but cut it off when she... had to leave her home." He frowned. "I can't remember why she left. She had bright blue eyes. I think... I think we were related and she was my favourite... whatever it was we were to each other." He moved on to the drawing next to it, of a faceless girl with medium-length curls. He missed Thalia's tears and flushed face. He stroked the faceless girl's cheek and ran a finger along her curls. "The other girl, I think I knew her for a short time, because I remember less about her. She had golden hair, full of curls and ringlets. Her eyes were strange, I think. I... I think I came from a family full of people with blue and green eyes, so her gray eyes were different. I... can't remember much more about them. I wish I did, though." He still had his back to the two girls, and so missed their tears and stifled sobs of happiness and pity.

They quickly dried their eyes and puffed their cheeks in an attmept to counter their slightly puffy eyes. Annabeth glanced at Thalia, who was already looking at her in a pleading manner. Annabeth ducked her head and tried to steady her voice.  
"Uh, P- Captain? I think I may be able to fill you in. Well, Thalia and I will." She said, quietly.  
Percy spun around, quickly. "I... I know the name 'Thalia'. She... she was the one with dark hair." His gaze turned and stayed on Thalia, who started crying. Tears running down her face, she started sobbing.  
"You..." she attempted to talk while crying, "you're my cousin. And... you're my favourite, too." She grinned a shakey grin.  
A huge flash of recognition went through his beautiful eyes and he gasped, his eyes watering. "Th...thalia? Thalia Grace?" He gasped, his voice breaking. She nodded. He started crying, but his expression didn't change. "P… Pinecone Face?"

This nickname sent Thalia into a fresh flood of tears. "P... Percy!" She sobbed. "Oh, Kelp Head, I missed you so much!"  
Even with his tears running down his face, Annabeth still believed Percy to be the handsomest man she'd ever seen. "Please, Thals. Please, tell me what happened before my tenth name day. Then, I'll tell you all of my adventures since then." He begged.  
"Of course, Perce." She agreed, like Annabeth, never wanting to see Percy's tears again.

* * *

Thalia recited as much of Percy's past as she could, sourcing letters sent between the cousins for information she didn't know. Occassionally, Percy's memory cooperated with them, and he corrected or added something with wide, happy eyes. As she did so, Annabeth looked around Percy's cabin. She saw a map of Greece and traced her finger over the islands of Helike and Histria, before tracing a travelling road between Olympia and Athens. Her eyes returned to Helike. The island on the map was crossed out, as if it had been scratched out.  
Once Thalia had reached the part where Annabeth and Percy first met, Annabeth turned and continued the story. She repeated the line she'd said outside the Child's Area of the Athenian palace. Percy smiled when she recalled the event. "I remember that," he added, "that's why I probably looked slightly confused when you introduced yourself before." Annabeth grabbed his hand and smiled, before continuing on with every meeting they'd had.

* * *

At the end of their recital, Annabeth and Thalia waited patiently as Percy took in and processed all of the memories he'd forgotten.  
He turned slowly and looked, with teary eyes, at Annabeth. "Wise Girl." He turned to Thalia. "Pinecone Face." Annabeth's eyes widened slightly, as Percy's face scrunched up and he started sobbing quietly, pulling both girls into a tight embrace. "My family." He whispered as he held them close to him.


End file.
